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A-5S Guardian
Standing ever stalwart to protect great republics and harsh dictatorships from foreign threats, variants of the venerable and versatile A-5S Guardian have served with Tahc YBWR for nearly five hundred years, changing little in the way of design philosophy and loadout while laughing in the face of looming danger, a shining array of weapons at the ready to vanquish any threat that shall present themselves at the doorstep of a mighty nation. Design Somewhat stumpy in it's appearance, the 65-ton Guardian was designed as such on purpose in order to minimize height profile and weaponry lost should critical damage be sustained, as evident by the considerable spread of equipment that dots the stocky exterior. However, those who do a bit of digging will find that much of the machine's bulk is comprised of thick, lightweight, synthetic-composite armor plating, layered in with gemstones and reactive armor bricks for maximum protection from all kinds of enemy attacks. In total, the Guardian sports a little over 13 tons of military-grade armor plating, one-fifth of the Mech's total weight. Most modernized A-5 variants, designated the A-5S, are equipped with Mech Urban Survivability Kits (MUSK), which cover up arm and leg actuators with additional armor skirts in order to minimize the chances of being critically hit in tight situations. Modular Explosive Containment Hampers (MECH) were added to the machine's characteristic missile pod in order to divert explosive force in the event of an ammunition explosion. Both arms have been equipped with diamond-tipped tungsten claws that can rapidly rotate to make for a very nasty melee attack against similarly sized opponents, while small proximity fragmentation mines have been attached to it's feet and legs to protect from a close range infantry charge. It's stoutness allows for a larger engine to be placed within it's spacious interior, to which Ageira Technologies has used to their advantage by picking out the standard 260-rated engine for a maximum speed of 65 kilometers per hour. This speed, combined with the unit's enhanced armor plating, makes it particularly adept at city fighting. Equipment A-5S variants carry a wide load of electronic sensors and communications arrays within it's frame, all of which were outsourced to Nedztral Armory Works for monetary savings. This does not affect it's performance; in fact, it bolsters it in terms of raw efficiency. There is room beneath the cockpit for an ECM jamming pod or active probe system, although for a multitude of reasons this spot is often filled with a MECH-equipped ammunition bin. Targeting computers are the only in-house electronic device added to the Mech, as UE engineers found the S-5 Targeting Computer to be considerably worse than the UE's standard targeting array, and helps the pilot acquire, lock, and hold lock on target. For a weapon's loadout, the A-5S carries a very diverse and lethal array of state-of-the-art tools. Most noticeable of all these weapons is the right-torso mounted missile pod, visible from the cockpit and actually blocking view to the right; an external camera feed monitor is located in the cockpit where reinforced fibreglass normally would be in order for the pilot to "see" out from that side. This pod is extremely versatile and it's contents can be swapped out for nearly any other missile launcher in UE's arsenal, however most Guardian pilots prefer to have a trusted 15-rack E-26 "Dart" missile launcher by their literal side, which can serve as both a long-range weapon in ripple-fire mode for area saturation and a close-range devastator against both armor and infantry in splash, or more commonly referred to as "blast", mode, in which it performs similarly to a Mech-sized shotgun. 180 missiles are carried in reserve, although in heated situations the launcher is often the first weapon to run dry. To quickly shed several tons, pilots can eject the pod, although most are encouraged to not in order to save money. For primary direct-fire support actions, the A-5S carries a United Engineering M-27 high-velocity plasma cannon, an essentially upscaled version of their man-portable cannon that fires flashed, superheated foam cartridges to set enemies on fire and melt their armor. Twenty foam discs, rather large in diameter, are tightly packed into the specialized ammunition bin, which protects not against explosion but against excessive heat which would prematurely melt the foam and make entry into the weapon's chamber much more difficult. It's generally considered wasteful among the ranks of Guardian pilots to engage infantry with the plasma cannon while having such little precious ammunition, so as an afterthought UE designers added two water-cooled .50 caliber machine guns to the left arm for anti-infantry or anti-light armor work, with 500 rounds split between the two weapons. Most pilots refrain from using the machine guns entirely, relying instead on their fragmentation pods for anti-infantry duty and simply walking over any armored units that they encounter, applying 65-tons of pressure on such a small surface area and usually crushing the vehicle in one go. As backup for when all the ammunition-based weapons run dry, the A-5S carries a triple array of standard-size laser emitters, which can fire a continuous beam and slag armor off of Mechs or incinerate smaller units. These do generate considerable amounts of waste heat, however, and use is discouraged in favor of weaponry that won't shut the Mech down in a life-or-death situation. That being said, pilots have rigged their targeting computers to "chainfire" the lasers, effectively turning the array into one large pulse laser and spreading waste heat around all three weapons while still maintaining fair damage output. As previously stated, two claws are placed onto the Mech's arms, which formerly housed two plasma cannons instead of just one externally mounted weapon, but these claws are certainly far more useful than a single plasma weapon. Capable of grabbing anything from information caches to light poles for use as impromptu melee weapons, pilots actively incorporate these claw attacks into their doctrine, often carrying them out with much laughter as the feeling of driving a massive drill into an enemy Mech or smacking them upside the torso with a streetlight overwhelms them. A-9 Guardian II A completely overhauled version of the A-5 created in 3950 in a bid to replace the aging chassis, this version replaces the machine guns and plasma cannon with a single concentrated particle stream launcher, which gathers energy from the upgraded fusion engine of the Mech which propels it at 83 KPH over the standard 65 of the regular 5 model. MUSK is retained, although the skirts are slightly longer for aesthetic reasons, and slat armor is attached to both the cockpit and arms in order to help diffuse shaped charges before they can impact the Mech's downsized armor load of 11 tons. A bonus does come from this lesser armor load, as the 15-rack E- 26 launcher has been replaced with a more powerful 6-rack H-13 multi-purpose guided missile launcher. Two laser emitters have been replaced with pulse emitters to make up in firepower for the switching of another laser to a laser painter for situations in which the Guardian pilot must acquire his own lock, although the missiles can be dumb fired (unreliably and inaccurately) should the situation require it. Some militaries have received A-9 Mechs over the course of the last 40 years, although production was halted in favor of more versatile, cheaper A-5SS Super Guardians and the more powerful A-5M Strike Guardian. A-5JJ Aerial Guardian This variant is completely unique in the heavyweight category, as it sheds a ton of armor, the machine guns, and entirely removes the trusted missile system for four externally-mounted jump jet packs that can lift the Mech up small distances, such as atop a parking garage or hill so that it can get the high ground. In order to reduce ammunition dependency, especially now that there is less room for it, the plasma cannon has been removed in favor of two high-mounted long-range laser emitters, which complement the three regular emitters still in the left torso. Limited torso yaw range means that the JJ cannot look up sufficiently to fire on air targets flying low overhead; as such a two-rack guided missile launcher with target retention fire control system has been added below the twin lasers, with eight missiles in reserve. The A-5JJ retains MUSK armor upgrades, but carries twice as many frag pods to compensate for the lack of machine guns. A-5JJs, like it's distant cousin the A-9, is being overshadowed by the A-5M and A-5SS. A-5M Strike Guardian Vastly different from the original, the A-5M was designed for nothing more than direct confrontation with the enemy. It beefs up armor to 15 tons, at the expense of a 15-rack launcher, and removes the plasma cannon in favor of two rotary-barrel, electrically-driven 40mm autocannons, getting rid of the right claw in order to better shield the weapons from harm. While even advanced armor-piercing ammunition won't outright destroy heavily armored targets, the high fire rate of 400 RPM can certainly cause some damage. The left arm houses four laser emitters, stacked next to each other, with very effective double heat sink arrays lined up to dissipate waste heat. One pulse emitter is placed as a backup, right below the cockpit, as losing both arms would normally neuter the machine. MUSK is retained, and additional frag pods are added to help against infantry attacks. A-10 Thunderbolt Not to be confused with the airplane of the same name, variants that entered production in 3998 are dubbed Thunderbolt, coined as such for the huge projectiles launched by it's arm-mounted Gauss rifle. Rivalling a 200mm cannon round in size, the ferrous nickel alloy-coated, solid depleted uranium-core slug is capable of penetrating most, if not all, armor types at even a few kilometers worth of distance away. Only 10 slugs can be carried at one time, however, at the expense of both machine guns, the plasma cannon, and the missile launcher, with only three lasers as backup. MUSK is retained, although the right claw has been removed. Production lines are expected to be closed soon, while a steady stream of spare parts will flow into UE's warehouses from a third party. A-5SS Super Guardian Swapping out all direct fire armament aside from five standard laser emitters, the Super Guardian replaces the 15-rack S-26 Dart launcher for a 20-rack and a 10-rack model, doubling the amount of missiles fired. The 20-rack is mounted in the large pod, while room has been made on the chassis to accommodate the 10-rack. 400 missiles shared by both weapons are readily available in the right torso ammo bin, while special heatsinks help to vent heat on the left side. MUSK, of course, is retained, with additional frag pods for infantry duty. A-6S Support Guardian Relatively straightforward in concept; three particle cannons provide long-range direct-fire support. All weapons have been removed in favor of the three condensed particle launchers, and enough heat sinks to cool the sun have been added to get rid of all the waste heat in a quick manner. The particle cannons, with a rigged targeting computer, can chainfire the cannons, making for a steady stream of death. An ECM pod was actually added for once, allowing it to mask it's position as it tries to get a better angle on it's target. MUSK is retained, of course, and extra engine room lets the Support Guardian scoot around at 70 KPH. Despite these characteristics, the Support Guardian never really took off in the market, as many pilots found using particle cannons to be unnecessarily difficult, let alone three at one time. N-5S2 Striker Nedztral Armory Works' own modification to the Guardian takes a standard A-5S model and strips it entirely of weapons, replacing nearly every hardpoint with pulse emitters and filling excess tonnage with engine and more double heat sinks. The end result is simple; an ice-cold, 80 KPH-running death machine that excels at close to mid range combat with seven pulse emitters, ready to shear off armor as if it were a knife through warm butter. NAW has redesigned the UE-brand MUSK to be even more effective in deflecting attacks, making it a step up above the rest. History United Engineering has a long history of innovations, from the M22 Talon to smaller weapons such as the L-7 Quicksilver, but never before had they attempted to make a mech this large. Many design issues faced the highly skilled engineering team, although the first A-51 model rolled off of the prototype assembly line just 30 years after the project's beginning. Drastically behind schedule, the A-51 was released to militaries around the world, attracting a few buyers but losing them shortly after once they found that several critical flaws were inherent with the traditional, tall design. A complete redesign was in effect, then, and by 3470 a brand new Mech was ready for production; the A-5 Guardian. Sporting the low profile that is now so characteristic of the Mech, many houses were skeptical as to whether or not this idea would work. One house took the chance and purchased several, which went on to be deciding factors in the War of 3489. All sorts of buyers lined up at UE's doorstep to purchase their own complement of 65-ton death machines, and by 3800 any country with a name had at least one Guardian in their arsenal. As 3900 rolled around, so did new technology, prompting an upgrade to a newer A-5S model, one that is commonly in use to the present day of 4000. Category:Machines